Tag: Gayle Leeson

Gayle Leeson

Posted on By Dollycas 2 Comments on Gayle Leeson

Corsets and Casualties is another highly enjoyable mystery from Gayle Leeson! 
~Reading is my Superpower


Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery
Paranormal Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Setting – Virginia
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grace Abraham Publishing (March 25, 2025)
Number of Pages: Approx. 242
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DV3KKSR1
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Stitched together with charm and mystery, this is one ghostly fashionista adventure you won’t want to miss!

For retro fashion designer Amanda Tucker, creating showstopping Halloween costumes seemed like the week’s biggest challenge—until her ghostly companion, Max, discovers an antique Bible tied to her own family history. When the Bible, purchased at an estate sale, is revealed to have belonged to Max’s grandmother, Amanda finds herself caught in a whirlwind of hidden relatives, long-buried secrets, and family intrigue.

Meanwhile, Amanda’s assistant, Zoe, struggles to decide between chasing her dreams in fashion and giving in to her mother’s demands to work at the family diner. As if the week couldn’t get more tangled, Amanda’s grandfather and Max’s nephew uncover shocking news at the estate sale’s auction house: the proprietor has been shot.

With Designs on You hanging by a thread, Amanda and Max must unravel the mysteries of the past before they sew up a perilous future. Will their sleuthing skills save the day, or will these secrets prove too dangerous to handle?

Author Links
Website   Facebook    Instagram   BookBub    GoodReads

Purchase Links
Amazon – Books2Read 

The Rest of the Series

Find all Gayle Leeson’s books HERE.

Find all books written as Gayle Trent HERE.

Find the Embroidery Mysteries written as Amanda Lee HERE.

Click on covers or links for more book information or to order from Amazon

7/10/2025

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Special Guest – Gayle Leeson – Author of Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery #GuestPost #Giveaway – Great Escapes Book Tour @gayletrentleeson

Posted on By Dollycas 3 Comments on Special Guest – Gayle Leeson – Author of Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery #GuestPost #Giveaway – Great Escapes Book Tour @gayletrentleeson


Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery
by Gayle Leeson

Beyond the Obvious:
What My Research into Auction Houses Taught Me About Value
By Gayle Leeson

“Five hundred thousand dollars for a wooden duck?” I stared at my computer screen in disbelief, convinced I’d misread the auction results. It was no joke. The “preening black duck” was one of Elmer Crowell’s early carvings, and it did bring half a million dollars at auction in 2018. Crowell’s decoys are considered masterpieces in the hunting world; and you can bet from now on if I ever see a wooden duck at any kind of sale, I’m turning it over to see if it has a Crowell stamp on the bottom.

When I began exploring auction houses for background on my novel, I expected to learn about fine art, antique furniture, and vintage jewelry. What I didn’t anticipate was falling down a rabbit hole of surprisingly valuable items that most of us might overlook—or even discard without a second thought.

My research revealed overlooked treasures that routinely command surprising prices. Vintage fishing lures, particularly those made by companies like Heddon or Creek Chub in the early 20th century, can sell for thousands, especially if they retain their original paint and packaging.

Then there’s ephemera—those paper items never meant to last: old travel brochures, product labels, movie posters, and vintage advertisements. A collection of early 20th-century circus posters might command five-figure sums, their vibrant colors and dramatic typography capturing a bygone era of entertainment. Even old seed catalogs with their charming illustrations can fetch hundreds from the right collectors.

This research transformed how I approach value in my writing. The character who discovers a forgotten treasure in my book isn’t just finding an object worth money—they’re connecting with the human story behind it. The auction house becomes more than a setting; it’s a place where the past and present negotiate their worth to each other.

For readers interested in exploring auctions themselves, I learned a few valuable tips: research thoroughly before bidding, arrive early to inspect items carefully, set firm spending limits, and most importantly—look beyond the obvious. Sometimes the most valuable items aren’t displayed prominently or touted by the auctioneer. They’re waiting quietly for the right person to recognize their worth—much like the overlooked clues in any good mystery.

The next time you pass a dusty wooden duck at a yard sale or flip past old advertisements in a box of papers, perhaps pause for a moment. You might just be looking at something extraordinary—hidden value waiting to be discovered.

Thank you, Gayle, for visiting today!

Keep reading for more information about Gayle and Corsets and Casualties!

About Corsets and Casualties


Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery
Paranormal Cozy Mystery
6th in Series
Setting – Virginia
Publisher ‏ : ‎ Grace Abraham Publishing (March 25, 2025)
Number of Pages: Approx. 242
Digital ASIN ‏ : ‎ B0DV3KKSR1
goodreads badge

Stitched together with charm and mystery, this is one ghostly fashionista adventure you won’t want to miss!

For retro fashion designer Amanda Tucker, creating showstopping Halloween costumes seemed like the week’s biggest challenge—until her ghostly companion, Max, discovers an antique Bible tied to her own family history. When the Bible, purchased at an estate sale, is revealed to have belonged to Max’s grandmother, Amanda finds herself caught in a whirlwind of hidden relatives, long-buried secrets, and family intrigue.

Meanwhile, Amanda’s assistant, Zoe, struggles to decide between chasing her dreams in fashion and giving in to her mother’s demands to work at the family diner. As if the week couldn’t get more tangled, Amanda’s grandfather and Max’s nephew uncover shocking news at the estate sale’s auction house: the proprietor has been shot.

With Designs on You hanging by a thread, Amanda and Max must unravel the mysteries of the past before they sew up a perilous future. Will their sleuthing skills save the day, or will these secrets prove too dangerous to handle?

Great Escapes Praise for Corsets and Casualties: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery
by Gayle Leeson

Corsets and Casualties is another highly enjoyable mystery from Gayle Leeson! Her engaging writing voice and delightful characters drew me into this story from the beginning and held my attention until I turned the final page!
~Reading is my Superpower

About Gayle Leeson 

Gayle Leeson is a pseudonym for Gayle Trent, an author living in Virginia with a beautiful family and quite a few pets. I have also written as Amanda Lee. As Gayle Trent, I wrote the Daphne Martin Cake Mystery series and the Myrtle Crumb Mystery series. As Amanda Lee, I wrote the Embroidery Mystery series. As Gayle Leeson, I have written and/or am writing the Down South Cafe mystery series, the Ghostly Fashionista mystery series, the Kinsey Falls women’s fiction series, the Movie Memorabilia mystery series. I also co-wrote some of the NYT best-selling Victoria Square series with Lorraine Bartlett. As G. Leeson, I write the Literatia portal fantasy series.

Kerry Vincent, Hall of Fame Sugar Artist, Oklahoma State Sugar Art Show Director, and Television Personality says the series is “a must-read for cake bakers and anyone who has ever spent creative time in the kitchen!”

Says Dean Koontz, #1 New York Times bestselling author, “One day I found myself happily reading . . . mysteries by Gayle Trent. If she can win me over . . . she’s got a great future.”

Author Links
Website   Facebook    Instagram   BookBub    GoodReads

Purchase Links –


Amazon – Books2Read –

Find all Gayle Leeson’s books HERE.

Find all books written as Gayle Trent HERE.

Find the Embroidery Mysteries written as Amanda Lee HERE.

TOUR PARTICIPANTS
March 24 – Socrates Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
March 24 – Sneaky the Library Cat’s Blog – CHARACTER INTERVIEW
March 24 – Frugal Freelancer – CHARACTER GUEST POST
March 25 – Maureen’s Musings – SPOTLIGHT
March 25 – Eskimo Princess Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
March 25 – Christy’s Cozy Corners – AUTHOR GUEST POST
March 26 – Jody’s Bookish Haven – SPOTLIGHT
March 26 – Sapphyria’s Book Reviews – SPOTLIGHT
March 26 – Reading Is My SuperPower – REVIEW
March 27 – Angel’s Book Nook – SPOTLIGHT
March 27 – Baroness Book Trove – SPOTLIGHT
March 28 – Books, Ramblings, and Tea – SPOTLIGHT
March 28 – Read Your Writes Book Reviews – AUTHOR INTERVIEW
March 29 – Boys’ Mom Reads! – SPOTLIGHT
March 29 – MJB Reviewers – SPOTLIGHT
March 29 – Escape With Dollycas Into A Good Book – AUTHOR GUEST POST
March 30 – FUONLYKNEW – SPOTLIGHT
March 30 – Nadaness In Motion – SPOTLIGHT

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2025 Great Escapes Tour, Giveaways, Guest Posts

Book Blast – An Eyre of Mystery by G. Leeson

Posted on By Dollycas 3 Comments on Book Blast – An Eyre of Mystery by G. Leeson


An Eyre of Mystery
by G. Leeson

BOOK BLAST 

About An Eyre of Mystery

An Eyre of Mystery
Fantasy Portal/Mystery
Grace Abraham Publishing (July 12, 2022)
Print length ‏ : ‎ 177 pages
Kindle ASIN ‏ : ‎ B09ZDLM7B7

Classic literature is at risk of disappearing from the world…

 

When Gia accepts a job as a library archivist at a manor house in North Carolina, she has no idea what she’s in for. On day one, she finds herself outside her comfort zone when she accidentally travels through a magical portal to the world of Jane Eyre. She finds Edward Rochester imprisoned as he awaits his death sentence for killing his wife. But Gia has read the book, and she knows Edward is innocent of murder.

 

Soon, she realizes that there are sinister mystical forces working to rewrite the narrative, hoping to destroy the manuscript altogether. To restore order and reset the book to its original state, Gia must discover who actually killed Bertha Rochester and framed her husband for the crime.

 

But few of the people she meets are who they claim to be and they all have secrets…including Edward.

 

About G. Leeson

Gayle [G. Leeson, for this book] has taken a real leap of faith with An Eyre of Mystery and the world of Literatia. She decided to explore what would happen if a reader–or in this case, an archivist–actually got lost in a great book. But when she travels through the portal into the world Jane Eyre, she finds it to be a topsy-turvy mess. Edward Rochester is facing a death sentence, and Gia has been tasked with finding out who really killed his wife so that Edward can go free, the book will reset to its original form, and Gia may return home. If you’d like to get a sample of the book, please check out this extended sneak peek (first five chapters) at https://BookHip.com/SFPWRLD.

Author Links

Gayle Leeson Website    Facebook     FB Reader Group    Twitter    Instagram

Purchase Links

An Eyre of Mystery: Time Travel Fantasy (Literatia Series Book
Pre-Order Today for $2.99!!

Amazon    Books2Read

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I Read What You Write  
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Lisa Ks Book Reviews     
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Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders: A Cozy Mystery Anthology – Pickled to Death by Gayle Leeson #Review #CharacterGuestPost #Giveaway – Great Escapes Book Tour

Posted on By Dollycas 7 Comments on Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders: A Cozy Mystery Anthology – Pickled to Death by Gayle Leeson #Review #CharacterGuestPost #Giveaway – Great Escapes Book Tour

Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders: A Cozy Mystery Anthology
by Hillary Avis, Benedict Brown, Catherine Coles, Paula Darnell, Connie B. Dowell, Ellen Jacobson, Joann Keder, Patti Larsen, Cate Lawley, Gayle Leeson, Daisy Linh, Rimmy London, R.B. Marshall, Megan Mayfair, Wendy Meadows, Phillipa Nefri Clark, Michele Pariza Wacek, Erin Scoggins, Cathy Tully, Victoria LK Williams and Carly Winter

About Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders


Mysteries, Midsummer Sun and Murders: A Cozy Mystery Anthology
Aye Alba Publishing (June 21, 2022)
Number of Pages ~1600
Digital B09K9NN64X

Poisonous picnics, burgled barbeques, deadly deckchairs… and midsummer mayhem!

From a brilliant bunch of amazing authors, including multiple prizewinners and USA Today best sellers, comes this wonderful collection of 21 summer-themed cozy mysteries.

Featuring peril at the pool, blood on the beach, and felony at the festival, these fabulous stories—21 brand new and exclusive tales—will keep you entertained until long after the sun has set.

With stories from Hillary Avis, Benedict Brown, Catherine Coles, Paula Darnell, Connie B. Dowell, Ellen Jacobson, Joann Keder, Patti Larsen, Cate Lawley, Gayle Leeson, Daisy Linh, Rimmy London, R.B. Marshall, Megan Mayfair, Wendy Meadows, Phillipa Nefri Clark, Michele Pariza Wacek, Erin Scoggins, Cathy Tully, Victoria LK Williams and Carly Winter, you’ll surely find some of your favourite authors and discover some great new writers within the ~1600 pages of this set.

This collection will only be available for a limited time so don’t miss out – grab yourself a bargain today!

Today I am focusing on Pickled to Death by Gayle Leeson.

The fair would have been a lot more fun had Aunt Bess not been accused of murder – – and if the streaker hadn’t been such a disappointment.

Dollycas’s Thoughts

Aunt Bess had decided to oust the local pickle queen, Mabel Hobbs, by entering her own jar of pickles at the fair but while a streaker distracts everyone someone takes out the queen permanently using a jar of her own pickles. A witness says she saw Aunt Bess taking aim with the jar just before she turned away but no one believes Aunt Bess could kill anyone. But without evidence to prove otherwise, Aunt Bess is in the hot seat. Jackie is doing her best to protect her grandmother while Amy tries to find the real killer. Her first order of business – find that streaker!

This was a fun read. I really enjoy checking in with the gang at the Down South Cafe. I was pleasantly surprised that even in this shorter format so many members of the cast were able to be included. While Amy and her cousin Jackie are the stars, Homer with his daily heroes continues to be my favorite. The fair brings a blast from Amy’s mom’s past to town and that upset Amy a bunch. It gives readers a little snippet of Amy and her mom’s history and how it had affected their lives moving forward.

Mabel Hobbs was a woman with a plan and that plan may have been what had gotten her killed. There are some clear suspects besides Aunt Bess and a corkscrew twist adds even more. Ms. Leeson does an excellent job of giving her readers an interesting mystery with enough meat to sink our teeth into with a very exciting ending. That is not easy to do in less than 100 pages. The streaker was a nice touch too, but now that song is in my head. “Boogity Boogity!!!”

Pickled to Death was a Perfect little mini Escape!

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CHARACTER GUEST POST WITH PRINCESS ELOISE
By Gayle Leeson

 

Don’t be intimidated because I’m royalty. I don’t think my lineage sets me on a pedestal. Being a cat does that.

I live with Amy Flowers, who owns the Down South Café. Amy is a sweet girl, and I like her okay. She makes sure I get all the attention I want and plenty to eat and drink. But she’s not my favorite. My favorite human in the world is Amy’s mother, Jenna. But when Jenna’s mom died, Jenna moved into the house on the hill above Amy’s place to live with her aunt. Since Aunt Bess is allergic to cats—huge eye roll here because really…am I right?—I had to stay here at Amy’s house. I guess the aunt was too old to rehome because, honestly, I don’t know who else would have her at this point. She’s quite the handful. At least, Jenna is close by, and I get to see her all the time.

Amy has been dating a great guy lately, and I like him a lot. His name is Ryan, and he’s a police officer. Whenever he comes to visit, I hop onto his lap. It’s funny because it makes Amy a little jealous because she wishes I liked her that much. Between you and me, that’s one of the reasons I do it. Also, he has strong, muscular thighs. I knead and knead and knead, and then I curl up into a ball and doze. Purrfection.

I enjoy lying on the windowsill, lying on the chair by the living room window, lying on the kitchen chair that’s closest to the wall, and lying on my bed—although I spend the least amount of time there. I’d rather be up a little higher, especially when I want to avoid pats and licks and doggie breath, if you know what I mean. I like Rory, the terrier, okay. Or, at least, I do now. When he was a puppy, I referred to him as Rory, the terror. In fact, I thought that’s what the humans were saying when someone would ask what type of dog he was. But I came to realize they were saying terrier, and he’s grown up to the point where he’s tolerable. And he’s good for Amy. She needs someone willing to be picked up and cuddled at her whim—that’s not me.

Admittedly, though, I’ve been staying a little closer to her lately. There has been some trouble involving her cousin, Jackie. Jackie is the granddaughter of Aunt Bess—who I’ve already told you about. I’m not terribly keen on Jackie and her boyfriend, Roger, but I’d allow them to feed me if Amy happened to be out of town and Jenna wasn’t available. Amy loves them, though, especially Jackie. So, since Amy has been worried and sad about whatever is going on with Jackie, I’ve been staying close in case Amy needs me. She’s a good kid, and I appreciate her more than I let on. I have to say, though, I hope this ordeal gets put behind us soon. A girl needs her beauty rest, especially when that girl is a princess.

About Gayle Leeson 

Gayle Leeson is an author living in Virginia with a beautiful family and quite a few pets. She also writes–or has written–as Gayle Trent, Amanda Lee, and G. Leeson. As Gayle Trent, she writes the Daphne Martin Cake Mystery series and the Myrtle Crumb Mystery series. As Amanda Lee, she wrote the Embroidery Mystery series. As Gayle Leeson, she writes the Down South Cafe Mystery series and the Ghostly Fashionista mystery series. And as G. Leeson, she is writing the Literatia mystery series. Website

Release Date – June 21, 2022

Also by Gayle Leeson
The Calamity Café (A Down South Café Mystery) Silence of the Jams (A Down South Café Mystery) Honey-Baked Homicide (A Down South Café Mystery Book 3) Apples and Alibis Fruit Baskets and Holiday Caskets: A Down South Cafe Mystery Truffles and Tragedy: A Down South Cafe Mystery Book

Designs On Murder: A Paranormal Ghost Cozy Mystery (Ghostly Fashionista Perils and Lace: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery (Ghostly Fashionista Mystery Christmas Cloches and Corpses: A Ghostly Fashionista Mystery (Ghostly Fashionista

Writing as Gayle Trent

Between A Clutch and A Hard Place (Myrtle Crumb Series When Good Bras Go Bad (Myrtle Crumb Series Book 2) Soup...Er...Myrtle!: A Myrtle Crumb Mystery (Myrtle Crumb Series Book 4) Perp and Circumstance: A Myrtle Crumb Mystery (Myrtle Crumb Mystery
Murder Takes The Cake: A Daphne Martin Cake Mystery (The Dead Pan (The Daphne Martin Mysteries Book 2) Killer Sweet Tooth: A Daphne Martin Cake Mystery (Daphne Martin Battered to Death (Daphne Martin Cake Mysteries) Killer Wedding Cake (Daphne Martin Cake Mystery)

Writing as Amanda Lee

The Quick and the Thread: An Embroidery Mystery Stitch Me Deadly: An Embroidery Mystery Thread Reckoning: An Embroidery Mystery The Long Stitch Good Night: An Embroidery Mystery
Thread on Arrival: An Embroidery Mystery Cross-Stitch Before Dying: An Embroidery Mystery Thread End (Embroidery Mystery Book 7) Wicked Stitch (Embroidery Mystery Book 8) The Stitching Hour (Embroidery Mystery Book 9) Better Off Thread (Embroidery Mystery Book 10)
Just click on covers for more book information or to order from Amazon.

Check out stories from the rest of these authors!

About Ellen Jacobson

Ellen Jacobson is a writer, cat lover & obsessed with chocolate. She writes cozy mysteries and romantic comedies including the Mollie McGhie Mysteries and the Smitten with Travel Rom-Coms.

You can find out more on her website (ellenjacobsonauthor.com), sign up for her newsletter (https://www.subscribepage.com/m4g9m4).

About Patti Larsen

I’m a multiple award-winning writer with a passion for the voices in my head. With many (many!) titles across many (many!) genres, all in happy publication, there’s no end in sight…

That being said, I’m short (permanent), happy (I have the best life ever) and blonde (forever and ever). I love to talk one on one about the deepest topics and can’t seem to stop seeing the big picture. I happily live on Prince Edward Island, Canada, home to Anne of Green Gables and the most beautiful red beaches in the world, with my multiple cats, pug overlord and lady and Gypsy Vanner gelding, Fynn.

About R.B. Marshall

Like my amateur sleuth, Izzy, I’m a dressage-riding computer geek who loves coffee – but there the similarity ends. She is far smarter than me, and a lot younger! I hope you’ll join me in discovering where her curiosity leads to next…

Pretty much all my books are set in my native Scotland, and my mystery stories are no exception. You’ll meet colourful characters solving perplexing puzzles in the most glorious landscape imaginable. Throw in a castle or two, the occasional royal, and maybe even a delicious cake shop, and you’ll have the recipe for my new series.

I also write fantasy and clean romance/women’s fiction, as Roz Marshall: http://viewAuthor.at/RozMarshall

and Historical Romance telling the story of Mary Queen of Scots, as Belle McInnes: http://viewauthor.at/BelleMcInnes

About Hillary Avis

Hillary Avis writes cozy mysteries about smart women who persist until they uncover the truth—about themselves, about their communities, and of course about any unsolved murders.

She grew up in a small town on the west coast, went to college in a small town on the east coast, and now lives in beautiful Eugene, Oregon. She has two charming children, three fluffy dogs, and two practically perfect felines named Mystery and Intrigue. She also has too many chickens and one very patient husband.

When Hillary’s not reading, writing, or editing, she bakes bread, makes pottery, drinks coffee, and streams The Great British Bake-Off, but not all at the same time.

About Cate Lawley

Cate Lawley writes humorous, action-filled mysteries that frequently contain a paranormal twist.

When Cate’s not tapping away at her keyboard or in deep contemplation of her next fanciful writing project, she’s sweeping up hairy dust bunnies and watching British mysteries.

Cate is from Austin, Texas (where many of her stories take place) but has recently migrated north to Boise, Idaho, where soup season (her favorite time of year) lasts more than two weeks.

She’s worked as an attorney, a dog trainer, and in various other positions, but writer is the hands-down winner. She’s thankful readers keep reading, so she can keep writing!

Paranormal cozy mystery series:

–Vegan Vamp Mysteries

–Night Shift Witch Mysteries

–Death Retired Mysteries

–Cursed Candy Mysteries

Cozy mystery series:

–Fairmont Finds Canine Cozy Mysteries

Cate’s sweet romance series:

–Love Ever After

–Lucky Magic

For bonus materials and updates, visit her website to join her mailing list: www.CateLawley.com

About Rimmy London

2021 Reviews, Craving For Cozies, Cruisin Thru Cozies, Giveaways, Great Escapes Book Tours, Guest Posts, New Release Challenge, You Read How Many Books Challenge
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